Category: News

TASTE is a project organized by a group of European small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from the food and seaweed industry with the aim of finding solutions on how to reduce the use of salt in food production through the use of seaweed.

The main goal of the project is to develop flavors from three types of brown algae (Ascophyllum nodosum, Saccharina latissima and Fucus vesiculosus) with the aim of replacing sodium in foods but many foods contain high levels of salt.

The development of new methods and technologies to reduce salt consumption is an important issue for the food industry. Many nations are struggling with excessive salt consumption, even though the situation has improved in recent decades. The World Health Organization (WHO) issues recommendations that total salt consumption is less than Article 5. per day but this corresponds to Art. of sodium. It can therefore be said that the food industry is facing a major challenge to reduce the amount of salt used in production.

Efforts have been made to replace salt with a mixture of minerals, natural salts and more. Consumable marine algae contain substances that may be useful. They usually contain large amounts of flavorings, minerals as well as salt, but to a lesser extent.

For further information Rósa Jónsdóttir, director of Matís, but you can also find information about the project here (in English).

A conference on food production will be held on 6 November. Sveinn Margeirsson, CEO of Matís, sits on a panel with the Minister of Industry and Innovation

Stakeholders and companies in food production have joined forces and convened a conference on Matvælalandið Ísland at Hótel Saga on Tuesday, November 6thnext. The question will be asked how to increase value creation and utilize the food resources that the country has. In the opinion of the conference organizers, there are many opportunities in increased production and sales of Icelandic food and related services.

How do we produce more and better food?
The keynote speaker of the day will be Daði Már Kristófersson, a resource economist, who will discuss how the nation can produce more and better food. After Daði Már, there will be very short lectures that discuss the subject from different perspectives. Pétur Hafsteinn Pálsson, CEO of Vísir, will talk about increased value creation in the fisheries sector and Finnbogi Magnússon, an agricultural engineer, will examine the possibilities of agriculture. Gunnlaugur Karlsson, CEO of the Horticultural Sales Association, will talk about marketing and brand management in agriculture and Sigrún Elsa Smáradóttir from Matís will talk about growth in small-scale food production.

How to feed a million tourists?
After a coffee break, the focus will be on tourism and food exports. Guðný Steinsdóttir, MS's marketing manager, will take the plunge and talk about the marketing of skyr and talk about Iceland as a brand. Jón Baldur Þorbjörnsson at Ísafold Travel talks about food culture and tourism and the chef Friðgeir Ingi Eiríksson tries to answer how to satisfy millions of tourists in the future. Finally, Guðný Steinsdóttir, Marketing Manager at Íslandsstofa, discusses Icelandic food culture internationally.

Minister of Industry and Innovation in discussion
After the presentation, there will be a panel discussion consisting of Steingrímur J. Sigfússon, Minister of Industry and Innovation, Erna Hauksdóttir, CEO of SAF, Jón Ásbergsson, CEO of Íslandsstofa, Pétur Hafsteinn Pálsson, CEO of Vísir, Sindri Sigurgeirsson, farmer in Bakkakot, and Sveinn Margeirsson, CEO of Matís. The moderator of the conference is Svana Helen Björnsdóttir, chairman of the Confederation of Icelandic Industries.

The organizers of the conference come from different backgrounds but have in common that they have a lot to do with food and food production. The group includes the Farmers' Association of Iceland, Íslandsstofa, Matís, the Association of Tourism, the Association of Fish Processing Plants, the Association of Industry and the Food Development Forum.

Everyone welcome and admission free
The conference on Matvælalandið Ísland is open to everyone and admission is free. It starts at 12.30 on Tuesday 6 November and is held in Katla's conference hall at Hótel Saga on the 2nd floor. The conference is scheduled to end at 16.00.

Participants are kindly requested to register on the website of the Confederation of Icelandic Industries, www.si.is.

Further information about the event can be obtained from Tjörvi Bjarnason, Director of Publications and Publicity at BÍ, tel. 862-3412 or e-mail tjorvi@bondi.is.

New Nordic food, or New Nordic cuisine as it is often called, is constantly launching new collaborative projects and entering a new arena with the aim of combining experience in the culinary and creative industries.

On the 4th-6th nk november nk. The policy will be set in Reykjavík, where the international conference "You Are In Control" (YAIC) will discuss the project "Meeting of designers and farmers", which is one of many items on the conference agenda that include food and creative cooking.

The YAIC is an annual conference that explores developments in the creative industries of music, arts, design, media, games, literature, artistic expression and film. This is the first time that the conference will be held with a touch of cuisine.

The Designers 'and Farmers' Meeting is a collaborative project between product designers from the Iceland Academy of the Arts and farmers who have jointly developed unique foods based on traditional Icelandic products. In addition to this collaboration, Matís assisted designers and farmers with the technical aspects of food development and production that followed.

During the first three years of the partnership, the group developed four completely new foods. These products are from four farmers from different parts of the country and have been developed and assembled by designers and are now all presented at the buffet at the conference. YAIC and the Designers 'and Farmers' Meeting, together with a creative initiative from Harpa's chefs, give participants the opportunity to enjoy a unique dining experience.

A meeting of designers and farmers will be presented at the conference, on Monday 5 November at 12:00. Following this, the relatives of New Nordic Food and the project will show their work. Minister of Culture Katrín Jakobsdóttir will attend the conference, along with other public guests.

The buffet will include rye bread roll cake, which is a new interpretation of roll cake, but will also offer rhubarb caramel and skyr confectionery. This will be served with Icelandic berries and fruit drinks as well as the house salad, which is grown in Harpan's garden. Bjarni Gunnar Kristjánsson, Harpa's head chef, says that the idea came from his own garden, where he grows his own herbs and salad for the summer. "We wanted to experiment with guests and give them the opportunity to choose their own salad."

"This will definitely be the first step towards future collaboration with new international and creative people. I think we have made the right decision, the unique country Iceland for a new creative Nordic food experience ", says Elisabet Skylare, project manager at Food and Creative Industries and New Nordic Food.

"It is new and exciting to see food as a value along with a number of other creative disciplines such as music, media, art, literature, films, artistic expression, design and games. We feel that this initiative has shown new ways of working together. The food tradition enhances the guest experience, but there are also stakeholders from different backgrounds in the creative industry ", says Anna Hildur, Nomex, Nordic Music Export and chairman of YAIC.

Further information:
You Are In Control
www.youareincontrol.is

Designers 'and farmers' dates
www.designersandfarmers.com

This event is possible due to a collaboration between YAIC, Designers 'and Farmers' Meeting, Harpa, Music and Conference Center, Creative Arts Center, Íslandsstofa and New Nordic Food (www.nynordiskmad.org).

Contacts:
New Nordic Food, Elisabet Skylare, (+45) 2620 7579
You Are In Control, Anna Hildur Hildibrandsdóttir, 854 5763

Matís participates in various projects in co-operation projects with the other Nordic countries. This applies to individual projects involving other research companies, institutions and production companies, and in many cases Matís leads other Icelandic institutions or companies to such Nordic projects.

These projects are not least relevant to the fisheries sector, as the basic industry in Iceland and the fisheries sector are very similar in the Nordic countries. In addition, some fish stocks in the North Sea are shared or stray stocks, which means that catches from the same stock are within more than one fishing jurisdiction.

Sigurjón Arason, Matís' chief engineer, represents Iceland in two working groups that outline research and co-operation in the Nordic fisheries sector. The working groups are part of the Nordic Council of Ministers. On the one hand, there is the EK-FJLS group of officials, which formulates the Nordic Council of Ministers' policy on fisheries and aquaculture, and on the other, the so-called AG-Fisk working platform, which oversees these projects and provides funding in the form of grants to the group's various projects. Sigurjón says that participation in this Nordic co-operation is very important. This is a value for Icelanders as a fishing nation, in addition to which other nations enjoy the experience and knowledge that Icelanders have to offer from their fishing industry. "The tasks in this Nordic work are diverse, such as the utilization of marine resources, fish processing development and fish processing technology. The aim of all such projects is, of course, first and foremost to improve the final product, create increased value for seafood and thus create a better market position. But we also have issues on the table that deal with political issues, such as the exploitation of common fish stocks. The basis for solutions in such cases often lies in the dialogue and collaboration of scientists, "says Sigurjón.

Despite the fact that the Icelandic fisheries sector has much in common with the Norwegian and Faroese fisheries sectors, Sigurjón says that it is of great value to also gain the experience of other Nordic nations in the fisheries sector, such as Denmark, Finland and Sweden. "All of this gives us results, both the research company Matís, other Icelandic companies and institutions and in fact Iceland as a progressive fishing nation," says Sigurjón.

For further information Sigurjón Arason, chief engineer at Matís.

Matís and Háskólafélag Suðurlands advertise the position of an employee in Suðurland. The employee will work equally on projects related to Matís Food Workshop in Flúðir in Hrunamannahreppur and the development of education in the South.

More information can be found here: www.matis.is/atvinna

Tuesday, October 23 at 15:30, Master's student Paulina Elzbieta Romotowska will give a lecture at Matís, Vínlandsleið 12, on her master's project at the Faculty of Food and Nutrition, University of Iceland:

Tuesday, October 23 at At 15:30, Master's student Paulina Elzbieta Romotowska will give a lecture on her master's project at the Faculty of Food and Nutrition, University of Iceland: cod muscle - Effect of copper (II) chloride on lipid oxidation ).

Further information
Master's lecture at Matís, Vínlandsleið 12, 113 Reykjavík.
Supervisor: Sigurjón Arason Associate Professor, Kristberg Kristbergsson Professor, PhD and Kristín A. Þórarinsdóttir, Project Manager PhD.
Examiner: Ágústa Guðmundsdóttir, Professor PhD
Location: Esja Meeting Room (311), 23 October at 15: 30-16: 30
The lecture (in English) will be at Matís, Meeting Room Esja (311) and is open to everyone

Abstract
Cod (Gadus morhua) is one of the most common fish species in salted fish processing in Iceland. The production of salted fish has changed a lot over time. Among other things, the processing processes have been made more targeted.

Emphasis is placed on preserving the characteristic taste and texture of the salted fish during transport and storage. Recent studies have shown that the condition of the raw material affects the stability of cod during the salting process. The variability of raw material by fishing area and season can have a significant effect on the quality of salted fish and overall utilization. Fluctuations in the condition and chemical composition of the muscle are seasonal due to variations in the food supply and behavior of the fish, especially in relation to spawning. The formation of eggs and stingrays and also the food has a great influence on the physical properties of cod muscles. These variables can affect fat stability, oxidative activity, fatty acid composition (FAC), polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), jaundice (b *) and evolution.

The aim of the project was to monitor and obtain information on fat oxidation, which takes place during the production and storage of salted cod, caught at different times of the year. Fat evolution (oxidation) processes, fat composition and color change of products during the salting process and during storage were measured. The formation of free fatty acids (ffa) and changes in phospholipids and total fat content were studied. The intensity of fluorescence was measured to monitor oxidative degradation. Research has shown that seasonal changes affect fat stability. The oxidation of fat in salted fish was higher in cod caught in November than in spring or summer (March and May), but the fat was stable during the salting process in August.

The results show that oxidation of fat during the salting process and during storage, increases the amount of peroxide (PV), thiobarbituric value (TBARS), stimulates yellowing (b * value), increases the content of free fatty acids (ffa) and contributes to the reduction of PUFA, polyene substance (PI), phospholipids and total fat content.

In the project, copper ions were added to the brine and their effect on fat oxidation was investigated. The results showed that copper significantly accelerated the oxidation of fat in salted cod and faster simultaneous yellowing during production and storage.

Keywords: salted fish, seasonal fluctuations, oxidation, copper (II), shelf life.

For further information Sigurjón Arason at Matís.

Matís was nominated for the Meat Book in electronic form. The Icelandic meat book was first published in 1994 and has been in use to this day.

The reissue of the book was published in the form of an online book in October 2011. Much progress has been made in meat and food science, so this is a timely project on the go, which appeals to a wide group. Today, the meat book, www.kjotbokin.is, contains chapters on lamb, beef and horsemeat.

The aim is to publish a chapter on pork and poultry. Access to the meat book is open to everyone and is free.

Gróðrarstöðin Lambhagi ehf. received Fjöreggið this time and Matís congratulates the company on the award.

For further information Óli Þór Hilmarsson at Matís.

At the bottom of the sea are various treasures and rich biodiversity. There is a lot to eat there, but it is rare for people to pick up what they see at the bottom and put it in their mouths.

This experience is the core of the preparatory project "From diving to the stomach" ("Gourmet Diving") sponsored by AVS and which Matís has been working on this summer in collaboration with Náttúrustofa Vestfjarði, Núp ehf., Dive.is, Alan Deverell and last but not least Sveinbjörn Hjálmarsson, diver.

"The idea is to take tourists on diving trips in the Westfjords and allow them to pick up shells and more that can be eaten. They would then have their food cooked by a chef from Hotel Núpi, either on the beach when they come out of the sea or at the hotel. The food would be cooked in front of them so they could watch the whole process, "says Sveinbjörn and adds that in some places there is some flatfish that is good to catch by hand. Therefore, tourists can easily find great and good meals.

The landscape is very variable
Sveinbjörn dived and snorkeled in several places in the Westfjords together with Bjarki Sigurjónsson who was a summer student under the auspices of Matís. The goals were to find edible species, look at the locations of the upper and lower seas and make a rough assessment of how much could be picked in each place. "These places are never the same, although there may be only a hundred meters between them, the landscape is so varied. In almost every place there was something interesting to see better, both for the eye and of course the taste buds. We found a lot of scallops, scallops and sea urchins. There was also a lot of scallops, mussels, ointments that are shellfish, crayfish, solitary crabs and bait kings, to name a few. The tourists would receive instructions before going into the sea about what can be picked up and what not, in addition to which I would lead them on and point out to them what and where can be picked up, "says Sveinbjörn.

An idea that came about in the west
Ólafur Ögmundarson at Matís says that the idea is very good and that is why the company has decided to take part in the preparatory project, which could later lead to the establishment of a company that would take tourists on diving trips. "In this case, the application came to my table and I decided to apply for a grant to embark on the project. Our role has mostly revolved around project management and research implementation. Bjarki worked on this on our behalf and was under my guidance and Kristján Einarsdóttir from Náttúrustofa Vestfjarði, "says Ólafur.

"The idea is based on Alan Deverell's master's thesis. He was a student in ocean and coastal area management at the University Center of the Westfjords. It can be said that the idea originated in the area and we went further with it. The final goal is for Sveinbjörn to be able to use the final report to start a company that sells such diving trips in the Westfjords, "Ólafur concludes.

For further information Ólafur Ögmundarson at Matís.

^{This article first appears in the 7th issue. Ægis (www.athygli.is)}

Oddur Már Gunnarsson, Head of Business Development at Matís, has taken over the position of Secretary General of SAFE. It is a great honor for Odd personally and for Matís that he has been chosen to carry out this important work, but SAFE Consortium is a network of research companies and institutions on food safety.

Odd's selection for the position of Secretary General shows Matís 'best position when it comes to food security issues, but one of Matís' roles according to law is to ensure food security and sustainable use of the environment through research, innovation and services.

In addition to holding the position of SAFE's Secretary General, Matís will chair the network and oversee all of its operations.

"One of the things we do online is to carry out new projects related to food safety, and recently we have led this work as chairman," says Oddur Már Gunnarsson, division manager at Matís and general secretary of SAFE.

For further information Oddur Már.

SAFE Consortium website: www.safeconsortium.org/

Króli ehf Fjallabyggð recently formally handed over a new floating pier in Innri Höfn in Siglufjörður. This is the first floating pier from Króli ehf., Where a propeller anchor developed by Hafbor ehf. Is used to attach the pier to the seabed. This is a collaboration between Króli, Hafbor, Rannís and Matís.

On that occasion, an agreement was signed between Hafbor ehf.

KRÓLI ehf, which is owned by Kristján Óli Hjaltason, has in recent years built up specialized services with concrete floating piers and equipment for Icelandic ports, but with the first piers there were units that have served the people of Siglfjörður for well over 20 years. The floating docks are Swedish design, but 2 years ago an agreement was signed with the unit's designer to start production in Iceland. The production is in the hands of Loftorka in Borgarnes ehf, where everything meets the quality requirements of SF Marina AB in Sweden, which has been one of the leading wharf manufacturers in the world. Siglufjarðarhöfn is the first buyer of concrete 12 meter fingers, which is a novelty in mooring at floating piers, but the fingers are suitable for mooring large covered boats that call for more space at piers.

Hafbor ehf in Siglufjörður, which is owned by Erling Jónsson, Hilmar Erlingsson and Gunnar Júlíusson, has for the past three years designed, developed and tested equipment that attaches screw anchors to the seabed with new technology in collaboration with Matís, Rannís and others. The technology makes it possible to install powerful anchors in the seabed without divers at depths of up to 100 meters. The technology is aimed at use for mussel farming and aquaculture at great depths, but is also useful in various other situations and uses where parts need to be attached to the seabed.

The agreement grants Króli ehf a license to market Hafbor's technical solutions through the international network of SF Marina AB and Seaflex AB, but these parties have already expressed their interest and expectations for the new equipment and it is expected that this agreement will strengthen domestic production and knowledge.

Hafbor ehf will focus on marketing to aquaculture of all types and it is worth mentioning that negotiations are currently in the final stages with KZO Seafarms and Catalina Seafarms in California for the installation of the first mussels and oyster farm in the USA located outside the 3 mile state jurisdiction, in federal waters. eight miles from Los Angeles. The aim is to sign agreements in the coming weeks and for construction to begin in early January 2013. Mussel farming KZO and Catalina Seafarms will be under the strict supervision of scientists in the coming years and high demands will be made on all equipment used in the area. The first phase involves the installation of 90 mussel lines in two areas, and if a permit is obtained, the aim is to increase the number of lines tenfold over the next five to six years.

The managing director of Hafbor ehf is Ingvar Erlingsson and the company is based at Gránugata 5 in Siglufjörður.

For further information, contact Matís Gunnar Þórðarson station manager in Ísafjörður.